Monday, February 19th was Heritage Day here in Nova Scotia. Commonly called "Family Day" in other parts of Canada. We decided to make it a real "Heritage moment" (Raise your hand if you remember those commercials!) and collect tree sauce! (Ok, Sap, but if you haven't seen this commercial, you need to watch it right now!)

Hubby has been collecting sap and trying to perfect his Maple Syrup for a few years now. This year he made a few tweaks to his filtering process and came out with an absolutely perfect batch of Maple Syrup! The kids loved it and wanted more.

It was such a blessing to be able to do this. We often take for granted the fact that Adam doesn't need to work 50 weeks a year like most people. Slowing down and taking a moment to embrace both nature and our Canadian roots is something I'm sure the kids don't appreciate just yet, but maybe someday they will.

Whether they know it or not, I took the time to just hang back and watch the kids, photograph, and just enjoy the present moment. I'll be the first to admit, I'm not an outdoors-y person, but I couldn't wait to photograph this. I loved the simple sense of adventure it gave the kids, and who doesn't love hotdogs on a campfire, amiright?

*sidenote: Before we left, I said to Adam "Should we bring dry wood?" He of course said "Nnaaaahhhh" and well, we had the most pitiful fire ever. We basically cooked hotdogs using a blow torch! But it was wonderful, we had a thermos full of hot chocolate, and we'll always remember the day we made "spider dogs" in the woods with a blow torch, lol.

Ladies and gents, this just may be my MOST favourite session EVER! (K, I say that a lot, but this time I really mean it!)Shelby showed up with less than a care in the world. She had zero expectations and told me to just do my thing. I chose outfits for them and provided Shelby with one of the dresses from my collection. Matthew was just as relaxed as Shelby, and baby Owen barely made a peep! The session was 100% as relaxed as the photos make it look. We walked, we talked, we snuggled.. (Well, THEY snuggled, not me! lol). I don't put a lot of pressure on my clients to pose and look perfect. I'd rather see their hair blowing in the wind and a relaxed, authentic snuggle. We even took advantage of Owen needing to nurse during the session and made the cutest photos ever from it! It was super windy and overcast which was absolutely perfect, and my favourite conditions to shoot in. The weather brought so much drama and power to the photos. I'm only now realizing how much I love shooting in dramatic conditions.

I want to re-do this session 100 more times. This picture perfect trio will continue to inspire me for future photoshoots for years to come, I'm sure.

Little miss Ellie is the star of one of my favourite newborn sessions when I was photographing them a few years ago. I can hardly believe it's been over 2 years since I stopped! Ellie is a big sister now!When Ellie's Mom, Jennie, wrote to me in August to ask for a session, I was debating not taking on any more photoshoots this year. I am SO glad I made room for just a few more! Jennie and her family are just beautiful, and having known Jennie from school years ago, I knew she is one of the kindest people I've ever met. I honestly just like her and her personality too much to say no! lol

Now, realistically we can't expect a preschooler and toddler to be 100% cooperative. They see beach, sand, sun, and water and they think "Play time!!" So, I made the decision years ago to make my sessions with children this age as low-stress as possible. I want my sessions to be enjoyable, so I play with the kids instead of trying to pose them. Ellie and Kale were totally on board with the idea of playing! We got some great smiles and silly faces out of them. They're such sweet kids, I hope I get the chance to work with this gang again! <3

When Sarah contacted me about photographing her wedding, she said it would be a small event, and she would only need a couple of hours of coverage, but she KNEW she wanted me to photograph it! Fast forward a few months and Sarah and Nathan are having a HUGE wedding with all day coverage! Sarah was so excited for her engagement session, she literally giggled the entire time. She was so fun to be around! Nathan is sure to have a lifetime of love and laughter with this girl around.

When Jodie contacted me about photographing her wedding, there was no hesitation. She knew she wanted me, and honestly there's no bigger compliment than someone who knows they want YOU. Her easy going nature made her a perfect match for my photography style!

Since they're already a family, Jodie decided to bring the kids and have a family session too! Sophie and Lane were by far the easiest children I've ever gotten to work with! They literally did everything I asked them to. I was actually shocked by how good they are, not to mention photogenic. Sophie just adores the camera and Lane seems to adore his older sister, so he follows her lead. Our session lasted under 45 minutes and I managed to get SO many useable images in such a short time! We were blessed with the most beautiful, windy day, and Sophie and Mom's gorgeous, long blonde hair made the entire photoshoot!